Contra/Diction: New Queer Male Fiction

by Brett Josef Grubisic (Editor), George K. Ilsley (Contributor)

Keenly surveying the borders of queer male community and identity, the fictions of "Contra/Dictions", a collection of stories by queer male writers from the U.S. and Canada, resist simple answers to complex questions. They suggest that while the "gay community" is becoming more "accessible" and "visible", there are regions and mindstates that cannot or refuse to subscribe to it, recognizing the plurality of gay identity. Mordant, coarse, and full of angry, wry truths, Contra/Dictions asks pressing questions of both the culture of queer men and the larger world in which it is often uncomfortably enmeshed. The nightmare and paradise of sexuality, love, and community are viewed from different perspectives, along with issues of race, economics, violence, politics, and homophobia. Pulling no punches, Contra/Dictions is a snapshot of queer male life in North America at the cusp of the millenium.

Genres: Anthologies, Fiction

243 pages, Perfect Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

About the author

Brett Josef Grubisic teaches contemporary literature at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He is the author of Understanding Beryl Bainbridge as well as the novel The Age of Cities. He is the co-author (with David L. Chapman) of American Hunks: The Muscular Male Body in Popular Culture, 1860–1970 and co-editor (with Andrea Cabajsky) of National Plots: Historical Fiction and Changing Ideas of Canada (WLU Press, 2010).

Reviews

[George Ilsley]

This anthology is a sort of informal follow-up to "Queeries" and marks a transition from fiction being "gay" to fiction being "queer". Let's hope that now fiction is just what it is, without a qualifying label (obviously I live in some sort of alternate reality, outside academia).

[angel]

Excellent collection of short stories, each offering insight into unique yet very relatable experiences of gay men. Enjoyed every story and loved almost all of them. Highly recommend.